Scouting the WPIAL boys' basketball playoffs: A look at the first-round matchups
The WPIAL basketball playoffs start this week.
A total of 87 teams from the six classifications qualified for the boys tournament, including 11 from the Beaver County Times coverage area.
Postseason play begins on Friday, Feb. 16 with first-round games in Class 1A and Class 4A, and a preliminary-round game in Class 5A.
Here’s a class-by-class breakdown of the boys tournament:
CLASS 6A
Local teams in the bracket: None (there aren’t any 6A teams in the Beaver County Times coverage area).
Top seeds: 1. Mount Lebanon. 2. Central Catholic. 3. Upper St. Clair. 4. Baldwin.
Defending champ: Central Catholic, which beat New Castle last year, 61-52.
Facts & figures: Since 2017 when the PIAA expanded its classifications for basketball from four to six, there’s been a different WPIAL 6A champ seven straight years. Among them are this year’s top three seeds: Mt. Lebanon in 2019, Central Catholic last year and Upper St. Clair in 2021 ... No. 4 seed Baldwin has never won a WPIAL title in any classification … It’s probably not a coincidence that Mt. Lebanon (18-4) leads all 6A teams in defense by allowing only 45.3 points per game. Blue Devils coach Joe David, a physical therapist who played college basketball at Pitt, published a 212-page book last year titled “The BORA Defensive System.” It’s David’s defensive philosophy which stands for “barrage of organized chaos and relentless attacks” … Central Catholic (14-8) won its section title with an 8-2 record. Its only section losses were to New Castle, which missed the playoffs with a 3-7 section record … Upper St. Clair (17-5) has one of the WPIAL’s tallest players in the 6-foot-10 junior center Tyler Robbins, who’s averaging close to 12 points and 12 rebounds per game. Earlier this season, he blocked 15 shots in one game.
Projected winner: Mount Lebanon.
CLASS 5A
Local teams in the bracket: Moon.
Top seeds: 1. Moon. 2. Franklin Regional. 3. Shaler. 4. Thomas Jefferson.
Depending champ: Penn Hills, which beat Peters Township last year, 70-65.
Facts & figures: Not only does Moon (19-3) have two of the most talented players in Class 5A in Elijah Guillory and Aiden Reesman, it also has a coach who’s a proven winner. Gino Palmosina, who’s in his second season with the Tigers, won two WPIAL titles (2021, 2022) and a state title (2022) at Bishop Canevin … Guillory is a 6-foot-5 senior guard who averages 20.4 ppg, while Reesman is a 6-4 guard who averages 15 … Ever since the season started, Moon has been favored to win its first WPIAL title since 2017 … The Tigers enter the playoffs on a roll having won 17 of their last 18 games. Their only loss during that span was to Hampton (19-3), the No. 2 seed in the Class 4A bracket … Except for Moon, three of the top four seeds – Franklin Regional (19-2), Shaler (20-2) and Thomas Jefferson (19-3) have never won a WPIAL title in basketball. Moon has won four: 2017 under coach Adam Kaufman and 2004, 2005 and 2006 under coach Jeff Ackermann … The only losses for Franklin Regional (19-2) were to Butler (16-6), the No. 6 seed in 6A, and Gateway (16-6), the No. 7 seed in 5A. The Panthers are led by 6-5 forward guard Cam Rowell (18.7 ppg) … Franklin Regional and Shaler (20-2) met in a non-section thriller in January that went into double overtime (Franklin Regional won 72-62) … No. 6 seed South Fayette (14-8) could be a sleeper. The Lions are led by 5-11 senior guard Michael Plasko, the WPIAL’s second-leading scorer (25.8 ppg) who recently scored 50 points in a game.
Projected winner: Moon.
Local schedule: Moon hosts a first-round game at 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 19 against the winner of the Trinity vs. Woodlands Hills preliminary game.
CLASS 4A
Local teams in the bracket: Lincoln Park, Beaver, Central Valley, Quaker Valley.
Top seeds: 1. Lincoln Park. 2. Hampton. 3. Montour. 4. Uniontown.
Defending champ: Lincoln Park, which beat section rival North Catholic last year, 78-68.
Facts & figures: Lincoln Park is the most overwhelming favorite in any of the six classifications. Not only are the Leopards the defending WPIAL and PIA champs, they also have one of the best guard duos in WPIAL history in senior Brandin Cummings (23.3 ppg) and junior Meleek Thomas (21 ppg). Cummings is a Pitt recruit while Thomas has many major-college offers including offers from Duke, Connecticut, Kansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and Pitt. Cummings needs only eight points to reach 2,000 for his career … Lincoln Park leads the WPIAL in scoring offense at 79.6 ppg … The Leopards have won six WPIAL titles: 2012 and 2014 in Class 1A; 2018 and 2019 in 3A; and 2021 and 2023 in 4A … Second-seed Hampton also has a dynamic duo in senior guard Peter Kramer, a Lehigh recruit who averages 23.5 ppg, and 6-9 senior center Liam Mignogna … No. 3 seed Montour (19-3) is led by senior guard Jake Wolfe and junior forward Ama Sow, who’s 6-11. Sow is a native of Senegal who originally arrived in western Pennsylvania to attend First Love Christian Academy, which had a prep school basketball program in Washington County. … With junior guard Brady Mayo leading the way with a 24.0 ppg average, Beaver (12-10) earned a No. 9 seed by finishing in third place in Section 2 behind Lincoln Park and North Catholic … Central Valley (14-8), the fourth-place team in Section 2, drew a 15th seed … Quaker Valley (11), the fourth-place team in Section 4, is the No. 13 seed. Senior guard Joey Coyle leads the Quakers in scoring at 21.0 ppg.
Local schedule: Freeport (6-14) at Lincoln Park (19-3); Beaver (12-9) at Knoch (14-7); Quaker Valley (10-11) at Uniontown (19-3); Central Valley (13-8) at Hampton (19-3). All four games Friday (Feb. 16) at 7 p.m.
CLASS 3A
Local teams in the bracket: Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Ellwood City, Beaver Falls.
Top seeds: 1. Deer Lakes. 2. Mohawk. 3. Shady Side Academy. 4. Neshannock.
Defending champ: Deer Lakes, which beat OLSH last year, 61-60.
Facts & figures: There isn’t a prohibitive favorite in 3A. Deer Lakes (17-4) is the reigning champ and did land the No. 1 seed. But no less than eight teams in the four 3A sections won 10 games or more in section play. This bracket is up for grabs … Certainly no one should overlook No. 5 seed OLSH (18-4) which has reached the WPIAL Championship for five straight seasons. The Chargers won four straight WPIAL Class 2A titles from 2019-2022 before moving up to 3A last year. In a rebuilding year, OLSH still managed to share its section title with sixth-seeded Seton LaSalle (16-6) … Deer Lakes lost four starters from last year’s WPIAL championship team, but the Lancers did win their section and impressed the WPIAL basketball enough that they earned the No. 1 seed … Shady Side (15-7) enters the playoffs by winning eight of its last nine including a win over Deer Lakes. And the Bulldogs are led by Eli Teslovich, a 6-foot-1 senior guard who’s scoring 21.0 ppg. In his last four games, Teslovich has put up 30, 28, 24 and 24 points … No. 2 seed Mohawk started the season as the favorite in 1A but lost at home to Deer Lakes in December, 66-55 in double overtime … No. 7 seed Yough (18-4) is led by the WPIAL’s leading scorer. That would Terek Crosby, a 6-3 senior guard who’s averaging 25.8 ppg … Ellwood City (15-7) landed a No. 9 seed after finishing third in its section behind Mohawk and Neshannock. The Wolverines are led by 6-5 senior forward Joe Roth, who’s second in the WPIAL in scoring at 25.6 ppg … Beaver Falls (7-14) is the 14th seed after a fourth-place finish in section play.
Projected winner: Mohawk.
Local schedule: Derry (13-6) vs. OLSH (17-4) at Fox Chapel; Ellwood City (15-7) at Washington (15-7); Beaver Falls (7-13) vs. Shady Side Academy (14-7) at Shaler. All three games on Monday, Feb. 19. The OLSH and Beaver Falls games tip off at 6 p.m. while the Ellwood City game starts at 7 p.m.
CLASS 2A
Local teams in the bracket: Aliquippa, Sewickley Academy.
Top seeds: 1. Aliquippa. 2. Greensburg Central Catholic. 3. Northgate. 4. Fort Cherry.
Defending champ: Aliquippa, which beat section rival Northgate last year, 52-40.
Facts & figures: While Aliquippa (17-5) is the prohibitive favorite, Greensburg Central Catholic can’t be taken lightly. The Centurions (20-2) are one of only two WPIAL teams to win 20 games this season. Shaler (20-2) is the other. The only losses for GCC have come against Class 5A playoff participants Franklin Regional (19-2) and Penn Hills (14-7) … Last year, Aliquippa beat Greensburg Central Catholic, 61-36 in the semifinals. They could meet again in this year's championship game … As always, the Quips’ lineup on the basketball court consists of several athletes who also play football. That cast includes starters Cam Lindsey, a Pitt recruit, Brandon Banks, a Yale recruit, and the Goode brothers, Quentin and Qalil. But another starter is someone who doesn’t play football. He’s Josh Pratt, a talented 6-foot-1 sophomore guard who leads the team in scoring at 16 ppg. Pratt transferred to Aliquippa from Lincoln Park last year. His brother, L.A. Pratt, used to play for Lincoln Park … Sewickley Academy (13-9) is the No. 11 seed after a fourth-place finish in Section 1 behind Aliquippa, Northgate and Shenango.
Projected winner: Aliquippa.
Local schedule: Nazareth Prep (6-12) at Aliquippa (17-5); Sewickley Academy (12-9) at Jeannette (14-7). Both games start at 7 p.m. on Tuesday (Feb. 20).
CLASS 1A
Local teams in the field: Rochester.
Top seeds: 1. Imani Christian. 2. Neighborhood Academy. 3. Rochester. 4. Monessen.
Defending champ: Imani Christian Academy, which beat Union last year, 64-41
Facts & figures: Imani Christian will be hard to beat. Even though the Saints have an 11-10 record, it’s deceiving. They won their section with a perfect 10-0 record. Eight of their losses have come while playing in out-of-state tournaments against some of the better teams in the country. Two other losses were to PIAA perennial power Neumann Goretti, which has won nine 3A or 4A state titles in the last 14 years, and Lincoln Park … This past Saturday, Imani Christian lost to Lincoln Park in a non-section game, 83-74, but led at one point by 10 … Fourth-seeded Monessen (17-4) is led by star guard Lorenzo Garnder, who averages 25.2 ppg. On Friday in a 90-59 win over California, Gardner scored 64 points, which ties him for the second most ever points scored in a game in WPIAL history … Rochester (15-6) earned the No. 3 seed by winning its section title with a 9-1 record.
Projected winner: Imani Christian.
Local schedule: Rochester hosts No. 14 seed St. Joseph (3-18) at 7 p.m. Friday.
This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Scouting the WPIAL boys' basketball playoffs: A look at the first-round matchups
